


No Wrong Way

by Squeemu



Series: Wanderlust [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Canon Compliant, During Canon, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Prompto has a crush on everyone, Stand Alone, but ESPECIALLY on Noctis, but especially on Gladio, this is still mostly gen though so that's what it got tagged as
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-23
Updated: 2019-05-23
Packaged: 2020-03-10 03:00:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18929938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squeemu/pseuds/Squeemu
Summary: They found her in a sun-lit clearing just west of the slough, shivering and all alone. Prompto gasped, digging for his camera. "Guys," he said, "is that what I think it is?""Quiet, everyone," Ignis said, falling back a little. "We don't want to scare it."Prompto snapped a quick photo, just in case she got scared and ran before he could get a better shot. And omg, she wasadorable,a small round ball of sunshine, all tiny and cute. The most perfect chocobo Prompto had ever seen.





	No Wrong Way

They found her in a sun-lit clearing just west of the slough, shivering and all alone. Prompto gasped, digging for his camera. "Guys," he said, "is that what I think it is?"

"Quiet, everyone," Ignis said, falling back a little. "We don't want to scare it."

Prompto snapped a quick photo, just in case she got scared and ran before he could get a better shot. And omg, she was _adorable,_ a small round ball of sunshine, all tiny and cute. The most perfect chocobo Prompto had ever seen.

And okay, so maybe they'd just met, but Prompto already knew he'd die for her.

"Hey there, little fella," Noct said, stepping forward slow and easy. He bent down, holding his hand out, a shimmer of light sparkling around him. It reminded Prompto of the armiger, like when he was about to summon a weapon, and wait, oh shit, what was Noct doing?! 

Before Prompto could yell at him, Noct grabbed a carrot out of thin air. "Huh?" Prompto said instead.

"Is _that_ what you've been doing with your vegetables," Ignis asked. He sounded mad, but like, in a fond way? Or maybe it was just hard to sound angry while whispering in front of a really cute chocochick. 

"It's okay," Noct said, ignoring Ignis and talking directly to the chocobo, trying to sound soothing. He was doing a pretty good job, too. Prompto felt calmer already. "We won't hurt you." He knelt down to get a little closer, holding the carrot out for inspection.

"Uh," Prompto realized, looking around the clearing. " _We_ won't hurt her, but, like, is her mom around?"

"I don't think his mom is gonna hurt him, either," Noct said, laughing. Prompto resisted the urge to correct him. It wasn't like _he_ knew if she was a girl or a boy. 

Instead, he said, "I wasn't worried about the _chick._ I was thinking more about us?" Just thinking about it made him shiver. 

"Chocobo mothers _are_ known for their protective instincts," Ignis added. It sounded like the beginning of a lecture. "It would be best to avoid an encounter if at all possible."

"I'd say she's long gone," Gladio grunted, crossing his arms.

"No," Prompto gasped. "She wouldn't! Would she?"

Gladio shrugged. "It happens. Maybe she got eaten. Either way, this chick looks like she's been here for awhile."

"We should adopt her," Prompto blurted. 

"We should take her to Wiz," Ignis said firmly.

"Aw, but look at her! She's adorable!" Prompto said, waving his hand in her general direction.

"I'm afraid we haven't the time nor the resources to care for a growing chocobo," Ignis said, spoiling the fun, as usual. This time, it was even worse because he had a _point_. It just wasn't fair. "Wiz, on the other hand, is an expert in chocochick care."

"Aww," Prompto pouted, pulling out the puppy eyes in a last ditch effort to win Iggy's heart over. It didn't work. Ignis didn't even look at him.

"We can always visit," Gladio pointed out.

"You guys are no fun," Prompto sighed and picked up his camera again to catch some totally cute shots of Noct feeding her. Except. The carrot was gone and so was the chocochick. "Uh, Noct?"

"Yeah?" Noct asked, standing up slowly, a hand at his belt. 

"Where's the chocochick?"

He shrugged. "She ran away while you guys were talking. I guess she just got freaked out."

Prompto frowned.

"Well," Ignis said. "That takes care of that." He paused. "And Noctis—"

"Yeah?"

"Perhaps you could stop storing your uneaten vegetables in the armiger, hmm?"

"Then stop buying them," Noct argued.

Prompto laughed. "He's got you there, dude."

Ignis sighed.

\- - -

"Where to?" Ignis asked getting settled into the driver's seat, buckling in and checking the sideview and rearview mirrors. He did that every time, even though no one else had driven the car in _days_. Prompto impulsively took a photo of it to show Noct later. He'd like it. Ignis was just so... _Ignis_ sometimes.

"Let's go to the Chocobo Post," Noct said. "We should let Wiz know about that chocochick."

"Splendid idea," Ignis said as enthusiatically as he ever got. He started the car and, with one last check of the mirrors, pulled onto the road. 

Prompto could swear he heard the chocochick cheeping from somewhere behind them. .Was it mocking them? Or just saying goodbye?

Probably just his imagination.

\- - -

They didn't make it to the Chocobo Post before nightfall. Noct kept asking Ignis to pull over so he could check out some plants in the distance, just in case Ignis could make use of them. Prompto didn't even know why Noct bothered. It wasn't like he ever _ate_ them. 

Just as the sun was dipping below the horizon and Prompto's heart rate was starting to climb, Ignis suggested they head to the nearest campsite. To Prompto's relief, Noct actually agreed for once. Sure, he would _rather_ sleep under some good, unnatural lighting, but to do that, they would probably have to fight some bad, unnatural daemons. And Prompto _really_ didn't want to do that. They'd already fought enough daemons to last a lifetime.

Gladio'd barely got their tent set up when Noct disappeared inside.

"Pre-dinner nap, huh, buddy?" Prompto said, keeping his voice raised so Noct could hear him through the tent flap.

"Y-yeah," Noct replied, his voice muffled. He was probably already face-first in pillow. "I'll be out before dinner."

"I've heard that one before," Prompto scoffed, and he had. Noct always thought he was going to wake up in time to do stuff, but he only woke up once Prompto'd not only texted him, but also phoned him, _twice_. 

So instead of hanging out with Noct, Prompto tried to go hang out with Ignis. Maybe tonight he could help with some of the meal prep.

He got shooed away pretty much immediately. Iggy was probably trying to sneak vegetables into Noct's food again. It wasn't like Prompto was going to _tell_ on him. Not unless Noct asked him about it directly, anyway.

Right. So that left Gladio.

"Hey, big guy," Prompto called, heading over to Gladio's chunk of rock. He was standing with his back to the rest of the camp, looking out at the distance like he was on the cover of a romance novel. It was a good look. Prompto tried to take a photo, but of course Gladio turned around at exactly the wrong second and turned into a blur instead.

Gladio nodded at him. He used the cool nod, the one joggers sometimes threw Prompto's way like they were all part of some cool jogging club. "'Sup."

"Noct's taking a nap and Ignis is being sneaky about dinner," Prompto informed him. Gladio laughed. "What are you up to?"

Gladio gestured out at the slough in front of them. "Look at all that," he said, voice rough and gravelly. He would make _such_ a good romance novel hero. He even had the abs. Not that—not that Prompto knew anything about romance novels, of course. "Untamed wilderness. Who knows what's out there."

Prompto blinked. "Uh, didn't this used to be farmland?"

Gladio shook his head. "Too swampy," he grunted.

"If you say so." He stood there, looking out at the wilderness too, trying to see what Gladio was looking at. It was definitely beautiful, the last of the sun's light fading away and the stars slowly coming out, but Prompto was pretty sure he knew what was out there. Daemons and bugs. "So what _do_ you think is out there?"

"Adventure," he said.

"You say that like it's a good thing."

Gladio crossed his arms. "You can't have an epic road trip without adventure."

"Okay, first of all, we have had plenty of adventure," Prompto told him, holding up a hand, ticking the adventures off on his fingers. "The car breaking down? Remember that? And that fight with Dead Eye? Noct falling in the lake because his rod couldn't handle a big-sized fish? And then him and Ignis almost drowning? Oh, and don't forget running out of money and sleeping outdoors for, like, a whole week straight?"

Gladio nodded in approval, like Prompto had just come up with a really good pick up line or suggested they eat Cup Noodles for a week.

Prompto ignored him. "Second of all," he kept going, dropping his hand with its list of adventures, "all of those things were objectively _bad_. Adventure is supposed to be, like, finding treasures and saving the world, but right now it seems like it's just mosquitoes getting all up in my business and not being able to sleep because there's an Iron Giant doing a workout outside the tent."

Gladio opened his mouth.

" _Every. Night._ "

Prompto could sense the lecture looming on the horizon like a thunderstorm. Gladio could be as bad as Ignis, sometimes. And yep, there it was, Gladio opening his mouth, and—a cute little cheep coming out? Huh?

"It's not like your video games," Gladio was saying, and okay, no, so he definitely wasn't the one doing the cheeping. Was there _another_ super adorable chocochick that needed their help? "Adventures take—"

"Shh," Prompto shushed him.

"Excuse me?" Gladio demanded.

" _Shh_ ," Prompto said, louder this time. "I thought I heard something."

He grunted, thoroughly unimpressed. "Can't come onto the haven, whatever it is."

"No, dude, not like a monster," Prompto told him. "Something _cute._ "

Gladio's eyebrows lifted. "Something cute," he repeated skeptically.

Had he really not heard it? Maybe he just didn't know what Prompto was talking about. He'd made fun of Prompto last night for saying Bombs were cute, but, like, they _were_. In an ugly kind of way, like pugs and those gross, adorable hairless cats. "Yeah, you know," Prompto said, gesturing. "Fluffy and harmless. Smol, with a little bitty voice and big eyes. _Cute._ "

Gladio gave him have a few minutes of silence before finally shaking his head and _thwap_ ping him on the back. "Good luck finding it," he said and headed back to the middle of camp to do squats or push ups or something that was pretty much designed to make Prompto feel weak and out of shape. The guy had an ass of steel, but, like, really shapely steel? Prompto'd almost broken his hand the first time he'd gone in for the butt slap.

Ignis paused whatever he was doing with his knife to frown at Gladio. He said something, too quiet to hear and Gladio shook his head.

Prompto resisted the urge to take a photo. Instead, he wandered over, flopping down onto one of the chairs already set up around the fire pit and pulled out his phone.

"Prompto," Ignis called before he even had a chance to open King's Knight.

"Yeah, dude."

Iggy's mouth tightened, but all he said was, "Have you seen the bag with the vegetables in it?"

"Nope." Prompto thought about it. "Maybe it's still in the car?"

Ignis gave a world-weary sigh. "Perhaps."

"I'll go look," Prompto volunteered. 

"Take Gladio with you," Ignis instructed. "It's almost dark."

The missing veggies were not in the car. They checked the trunk—twice!— _and_ the backseat _and_ the front seat, just in case Prompto had been kicking them around all day without realizing it. He hadn't. Good thing, too, or Iggy would've added him to the chopping block. 

"It's a big bag, right?" Prompto asked Gladio, outlining the size with his hands. "Like, it wouldn't be in the glove compartment or anything."

Gladio grunted in agreement, wiping at his forehead. "Swore I brought it up with the rest of the gear," he muttered.

"Alright, so where did you put it?"

He leaned against the car, arms crossed, and okay, Prompto _definitely_ needed a photo of that. The dude could be a model. So could the rest of them, really. It just wasn't fair. "Where I always put it." He sounded kinda annoyed. "Right next to Iggy's cooking gear."

"Hmmm," Prompto mused. "Interesting."

Before he could say anything else, a gross bubbling sound came from across the road, like hell had started to boil over through the slough. "Better head back," Gladio said, glancing behind them.

"No kidding," Prompto said, trying to stay chill. He wiped his hands on his pants. "Shall we?"

"After you," Gladio said, and Prompto ran for it. 

They made it back to camp in one piece, if a little breathless. Okay, Prompto was the only who was breathless, even though he was also the only one who went running on a daily basis. Ignis glanced up from his pot, looking only mildly concerned. "Any problems?"

"Oh, you know, just another daemon popping out of the ground, ready to devour us," Prompto said casually.

"Couldn't find it," Gladio said. "Sorry, Iggy."

Before Ignis could interrogate them, Noct emerged from the tent with a yawn. His hair was a mess, but, like, a good mess. The kind of mess that took Prompto hours to get just right. It was _seriously_ unfair. "Is dinner ready?"

"Just about," Ignis informed him. "Have you seen the bag of produce, Noct?"

"Huh?" Noct stretched, just a little hint of tummy peeking through and Prompto did _not_ take a picture, even though he really wanted to. "Oh, uh, yeah. I think it was in the tent."

"The tent," Ignis remarked, like it had personally offended him. "I see."

"Sorry." Noct didn't sound sorry at all. He mostly just sounded sleepy.

"If you could be so kind," Ignis said, looking pointedly at Noct.

Noct blinked at him. Blinked back at the tent. "Oh. Yeah," and disappeared inside again, emerging a few seconds later with the bag. He held it carefully out in front of him, like it might give him cooties, and set it on the table next to the grill. "Here."

"You have my thanks," Ignis said and immediately started rooting through it. He looked up a minute later, frowning. "Noct," he said slowly, "did you take anything out?"

"What? No!"

Ignis turned the frown on the grocery bag. "The lettuce seems to have vanished," he muttered, almost to himself. "Where on earth—?"

"And you thought _Noct_ took it?" Prompto laughed.

"I thought perhaps it had fallen from the bag," Ignis said stiffly. Offended, no doubt, by the thought of the prince stealing _anything._

Noct shrugged. "I didn't see anything."

"Didn't see any lettuce in the car, either," Gladio offered. 

"Yeah," Prompto agreed. "And we checked every inch."

Ignis put one hand on his hip. "And you didn't misplace any vegetables in the armiger, Noct?"

"Hey," Noct protested. 

Ignis sighed, pushing his glasses up. "Then I'm afraid the dinner presentation will be somewhat lacking, tonight."

The presentation? "Dude, it's fine," Prompto told him. "Not like Noct was gonna eat the lettuce anyway."

Ignis sighed, deeper this time.

\- - -

Presentation aside, dinner was delicious, as always. Ignis said it was a new recipeh, but the skewers tasted just like his other ones only with some veggies shoved onto the stick, too. It was probably punishment for Noct hiding all the veggies in the armiger and the rest of them losing the lettuce. You wouldn't think it, looking at him, but Iggy had a sick sense of humor, sometimes.

Prompto was almost finished with his skewers when he caught another little _cheep cheep_. "You guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Noct asked.

Ignis frowned and Gladio gave him a _look_ , like Prompto was hearing things on purpose.

But maybe Prompto _was_ hearing things. That little chocochick was haunting him. His mom had always said he had a guilty conscience. There'd been this one time when Prompto was little when he'd taken some watercolors home from school. He hadn't meant to steal them, he just wanted to keep working on his paintings. But when he showed them his mom, she'd driven him all the way back to school to make him apologize and then hugged him when he'd broken down and cried. 

"You guys think that chocochick is okay?" Prompto asked.

"It stayed alive this long," Gladio grunted, taking a bite.

"And we'll alert Wiz to its presence tomorrow," Ignis added. "I imagine it can survive one more night on its own."

"Yeah," Prompto sighed. "I hope so."

"Maybe someone else picked him up," Noct added. 

Prompto brightened. "Yeah!" he said. And whatever. It didn't matter that much if it it was a guy chocochick, right? Prompto could be the bigger man about this. "Or the little guy's mom returned."

"I'm sure he's safe and well fed," Noct said, with enough warmth and confidence Prompto actually believed him. 

He took a bite from the skewer, feeling a little better about the whole thing. And maybe he'd been too worried to appreciate the new recipeh. "These skewers are really good," Prompto said. "I wasn't sure about these veggies, but—"

"Peppers are not vegetables," Ignis said stiffly. "They are used as spices."

"Uh," Prompto said, "okay. If you say so, dude. But there's also, like, zucchini and carrots and stuff." Ignis glared at him. It wasn't like Noct wouldn't have noticed them if Prompto hadn't said anything. "I'm just saying it's good."

"Thank you, Prompto," Ignis said, not in the least happy about the compliment. He turned his gaze on Noct. It was hard to tell if he was hoping Noct would show some gratitude or if he was just trying to make sure he wasn't going to stash _these_ vegetables in the armiger, too. 

"They're good," Noct nodded, like he hadn't noticed how weird Ignis was acting. He actually sounded kind of appreciative, too, which was weird. It was weird, right? Prompto had been expecting him to complain about all the carrots and zucchini.

Ignis blinked. "Thank you, Noct," he said after a second, sounding way more genuine but also bewildered. Prompto took a picture, just so he could have photographic evidence that Ignis could look puzzled and uncertain, just like the rest of them. 

And wait a second. One of carrots on Noct's stick was _gone._ Maybe he was storing them in the armiger. "Uh, Noct?" Prompto said. "Did you just eat a carrot?"

"Huh?" Noct looked at his skewer like it might help him out.

"There were carrots on your skewer," Prompto told him. "Multiple carrots. And now there's only one."

"Oh, yeah," he said, looking kind of guilty, "I, uh, threw it in the fire."

Ignis made a sound like he'd been wounded or was just strangling on his own indignation. 

Noct shrugged and ate another piece of meat.

\- - -

It didn't take them very long to reach the Chocobo Post the next day. The longest part was waiting for Noct to wake up and stagger out of the tent. After Ignis's second cup of coffee, there was the distinct sound of rustling, followed by a yawn, but then five minutes stretched into ten and then into thirty.

"Do you think he's fallen asleep again?" Prompto asked.

Ignis sighed, standing up. "Noctis," he called quietly, just outside the tent. Prompto wasn't sure why he felt the need to stand over there, it wasn't like the fabric muffled _that_ much of the noise. 

"Nnh," Noct muttered.

"We have important information to deliver to Wiz about the chocochick," Ignis said, his voice soft. He'd bent over slightly, like he was trying to whisper in Noct's ear, only, you know, from five feet away, outside the tent. "The sooner the better."

"He's fine," Noct mumbled, or at least Prompto thought that was what he said. The words all kind of blurred together. It could have been _you're lying_ or maybe _what's frying_ , for all he knew.

Ignis sighed, standing upright. "Very well," he said regretfully. "I suppose if you shan't be up soon, I may as well empty the coffee pot."

A beat. Noct's groan. "I'm up," he said, definitely resentful. "Geez."

And it may have just been a trick of the light, but Prompto was pretty sure he actually caught a glimpse of Ignis, mid-eye roll. The guy didn't say, anything, though, just put on a fresh pot of coffee and made them all breakfast. _Finally._ Prompto was _starving_. Hunger might be the best spice, but Ignis was also the best cook and this Croque Madame was probably the best thing Prompto had ever tasted.

They packed up after breakfast, and then it was only a couple hours until they hit the sweet sweet smell of chocobos. 

"Well iIf it isn't my favorite hunters," Wiz greeted them warmly as they approached. "What are y'all up to today?"

"We saw a baby chocobo!" Prompto blurted. "All alone! She was tiny and made the most adorable little cheeping sound and her mom _left_ her! To fend for herself!"

"Did she now," Wiz said, looking like he was deep in thought. "Whereabouts did you see the chick last?" 

"Just south of the slough," Ignis said, and then, like, pinpointed it with crazy precision. He had the latitude and longitude and everything. Prompto didn't know how he did it. Did they teach you that kind of thing in butler school?

"Do you think he could survive without his mom?" Noct asked.

Wiz frowned, stroking his beard. "Depends," he said finally. "The momma bird provides protection, of course. So long as the fiends don't get to it, though, there's no reason it couldn't survive. It'd be safer here. A shame you boys couldn't catch it and bring it back."

Noct looked relieved, like he'd been really worried about her. It made Prompto's heart kind of hurt, sometimes, how good Noct was. He cared about stuff like that, even if he didn't always show it. "We might be able to do that," he said casually. "What about food?"

Wiz shrugged. "Can take some of our gysahl greens, if you think it'll be hungry," he said. "Baby chocobos'll eat just about anything you put in front of them. Voracious little critters. They'll eat you out of house and home if you ain't careful."

"Is there anything they _shouldn't_ eat?"

Wiz laughed, looking a little surprised. "You really want to know?" 

"Of course," Noct said, half offended, half earnest. "In case we find the little guy again."

Wiz was nodding slowly. "Alright then. They can eat just about any vegetable or seed. Watch out for Durian tomatoes, though, those suckers got some real poison in 'em." Noct shot Ignis a triumphant look. Prompto had to put a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing. The dude had it _out_ for tomatoes. 

"I told you," Noct was saying smugly. 

"For _chocobos_ ," Ignis insisted. "They're perfectly palatable for people."

Noct turned back to Wiz. "And, uh, how do you feed them? You know. Just in case."

"Depends how old the little fella is," Wiz said. "Too young, and you gotta feed 'em by hand. Mash up the food a little bit first and then pretend to be the momma, giving it back to them."

Prompto could practically see Ignis taking notes in his head. 

"If you see 'em with their feathers all fluffed out, though, that's a good sign. That'll be an older one that can eat pretty near anything off the ground. Momma will just be showing them the best pickings, by that point."

Noct looked even _more_ relieved. Their chocochick's feathers had definitely looked fluffy. Prompto'd wanted to bury his face right in its feathers and breathe in the smell. Was that... weird? It seemed like it might be weird. He'd done it to Tiny, too, though. She'd smelled so good, once he'd gotten her cleaned and dried. All warm and furry, like pure doggy love. 

"Do you sell a mix?" Noct asked, putting a considering hand on his chin, like he was getting ready to buy something then and there. 

"Not for chocochicks," Wiz said. "We want people to bring any they find straight to us."

"Oh. Right. Uh, why?" 

"Feeding a chocochick the right food isn't the only thing you need to consider," Wiz told them, sounding very serious. "They need to be socialized with other birds. Best to start training them from a young age. And of course there's the danger of mites or ticks—" Noct took a step back, wrinkling his nose and looking seriously disgusted, "—or any other nasty that likes the look of those fine feathers."

"Mites?" Definitely grossed out. "Oh." Now he just sounded kind of disappointed. "That, that makes sense. So what kind of training do you do?"

"Get 'em to come to that whistle, for starters. And of course there's behaving during dinner time." Wiz laughed. "Ain't no use training them to use the bathroom, though. Birds just go wherever they're standing. They're not like cats or dogs."

Noct looked a little pale. 

"One certainly can't blame them for natural instincts," Ignis said, arms crossed over his chest. He sounded kinda smug, like maybe he'd read that fact somewhere and was happy to have it check out. Prompto was just glad he hadn't turned it into a lecture.

"Right," Noct said. "We'll definitely keep an eye out for the little guy."

Wiz smiled warmly, clapping a hand on Noct's shoulder. "I'd be mighty appreciative."

Noct turned, heading back to the car, his shoulders a little slumped.

"Maybe we should go back," Prompto said. "We could make it there and back before night falls, right?" 

Noct hesitated. "Ignis?"

What? Since when did Noct care about Ignis's opinion when there were chocobos to save? 

"It couldn't hurt," Ignis said. "We'd best make sure we have enough curatives, though."

"I'll go!" Prompto volunteered, sticking his hand up in the air like he was still in high school. There was just something about Ignis that made Prompto feel like he was twelve again and being judged. 

"I suppose you'll need some gil," Ignis sighed, digging into his definitely-not-a-fanny-pack pouch thingy. Prompto'd made the mistake of calling it that a fanny pack exactly once. "Please keep the frivolous purchases to a minimum."

"I don't know what you mean," Prompto sniffed and took the gil, jogging off in the direction of the post. 

"And no veggie chips!" Noct yelled after him. 

\- - -

Prompto came back with a dozen curatives and one bag of veggie chips. They were right there, and besides, this way he could try something new, healthy, _and_ guaranteed to drive Noct up the wall. 

He dumped the goods on the table just outside the caravan where the Noct and Ignis were waiting. "There. All stocked up. Where's Gladio?"

Ignis nodded at the caravan. "Putting our things away."

"So we're staying?"

"Gotta come back if we catch the chocobo," Noct shrugged. He pointed at the bag of chips, totally ignoring the curatives. "What is that?"

"Our snacks, dude," Prompto told him, keeping his face straight. "You didn't think we could play King's Knight without snacks, did you?"

"The vegetable chips," Noct said flatly. "As snacks."

Ignis made a weird snorting sound, only slightly muffled by his hand. "Pardon me," he said, clearing his throat.

"Look!" Prompto said, pointing at the marketing on the bag. "Crispy, crunchy, _and_ salty!"

"And _green._ "

"Chocobos love them!" Prompto informed him.

Noct frowned a little. "We're not chocobos," he said, kinda absently. 

"I, for one, think it's an excellent idea," Ignis announced. "A healthy, nutritious snack."

"If it's nutritious, it's definitely not delicious," Noct muttered.

"Your loss, buddy," Prompto said. And okay, he had to try some of them now, if only for the look on Noct's face. He opened the bag up, holding it up to his nose, and took a long, loud sniff. "Smell those greens!"

"Ugh," Noct said at the same time Prompto's guilty conscience _cheep_ ed.

Ignis turned to frown at Noct. "Noctis," he said slowly.

"You guys ready to go?" Noct said loudly.

Ignis hesitated a moment, a faint frown on his face, before shaking it off. "Certainly. We're all set?" He turned to look directly at Prompto. "No one needs to use the bathroom before we head out?"

 _Ouch._ He'd only made them turn around the one time! "I'm good," Prompto said meekly. "What about you, big guy?"

Gladio shrugged. "I'm not the one with the tiny bladder."

"It only happened the one time!" Prompto argued, grabbing a gysahl chip from the bag. And whoa. It actually _smelled_ green. Prompto didn't know _green_ had a smell until now, but there it was. He didn't know how else to describe it. It was just... _green._

"What only happened one time?" Noct asked, like he was ready to be absolutely horrified.

"Dude, no!" Prompto protested. "I didn't mean _that_!"

"And what did you mean, exactly," Ignis asked, his arms crossed. 

"I was talking about the time I made you turn around," Prompto said hotly, taking another chip out of the bag, "five minutes from—" 

_Cheep!_

He blinked. "Five minutes from the gas station. Did you guys—?"

_Cheep cheep!_

"Okay, that's not my imagination," Prompto told them, sticking another chip in his mouth at the same time Noct's pocket kind of twitched. And whoa. Uh. Okay. Prompto tried not to stare, but there was definitely a bulge there. A _moving_ bulge. "Uhhhh, Noct?" A moving bulge that was _cheeping_. "Is that a chocobo in your pocket or are you just really happy to see greens?"

Noct flushed. "Wh-what?! _Gross_ , Prompto, don't—"

"That _ain't_ a boner," Gladio said, crossing his arms and openly looking. It made Prompto's ears warm for some reason. "Trust me. I know."

"And trust me when I say I really don't want to know why _you_ know," Prompto told him fervently, even though his mind was giving him at least eight different solutions in graphic detail.

"What gives," Gladio demanded, ignoring Prompto entirely and talking directly at Noct.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with the chocochick who disappeared, would it?" Ignis asked, pushing his glasses up on his nose.

Noct glared at the ground. "I—I might have put it in the armiger. For safe-keeping."

"Uh, dude, your pocket is _not_ the armiger."

"I had to feed him," Noct protested. "And make sure he was doing okay."

"And he is rather cute," Ignis added, his tone somewhere between a pointed critique and soft fondness.

"Did you seriously—" Prompto started before thinking better of it. "You know what? Never mind. He's here now, we might as well play with him." And whatever. Ignis was calling her a guy now too. Prompto gave up to the general consensus. It wasn't like being a boy made it any less cute. "Before we give him to Wiz, I mean."

Noct grinned, scooping him out of his pocket and setting him on the table. "There you go," he said, all warm and soothing. He was using that voice again, the one that made Prompto kind of want to die and get re-incarnated as a chocochick or kitten and get tucked into Noct's pocket, too. That chocochick _seriously_ didn't know how good he had it.

It stood there on the table for a second, peering around with its little head cocked, eyes gleaming. Prompto pulled his camera out. These were probably going to be the best photos he'd ever taken. Would ever take. This was it. His peak, and it was going to be totally worth it. But before he even had the chance to take the lens cap off, the thing made a mad dash for the bag of gysahl greens and disappeared inside.

"Well," Ignis said after a second. "You won't have to worry about eating a snack both nutritious and delicious tonight."

"I bet you're green with envy, huh buddy?" Prompto laughed.

Noct groaned. "That was a cheep shot."

Prompto grinned. "Seriously? _Cheep_ shot? I'm going to pretend you didn't say that." He aimed the the camera at the bag of gysahl chips, waiting for the perfect shot. He _definitely_ had to get a picture of this. "The little guy really likes his greens."

"Told you," Noct insisted. "Chocobo food. For chocobos. Not people."

Ignis pressed his lips together but didn't say anything, showing some impressive restraint in Prompto's opinion.

The bag squirmed, green dust flying everywhere. "He's, uh, he's really going to town," Prompto said a little nervously.

"Good," Noct said. "Someone's gotta eat that and it's not going to be me."

Ignis cleared his throat. "I'm not sure it's wise to let him eat the entire bag," he cautioned. "I suspect a considerable amount of salt has been added to make the greens palatable for human taste."

Prompto blinked. Oh. Shit. "Hey, buddy. C'mon little guy," he said, reaching out with one hand to try and scoop the chocochick out. Noct went for the bag at the same time, and they just kind of ended up getting into some weird hand-holding fight. After a few seconds, Prompto let him go for it. It _was_ Noct's chocochick after all.

"Easy," Noct said soothingly, gently easing the little guy out of the bag. "Easy, I've got you."

Prompto clicked the shutter furiously. Noct, holding a chocochick. It didn't get any cuter than that. He was so busy snapping shots he missed the exact moment the chick got away. All he knew was one moment, Noct and the chocochick had combined into the cutest thing in the universe, and the next, chaos had erupted. Gladio jumped out of his chair so hard it fell over with a loud clatter, Noct had basically _warped_ out of his seat, and Ignis was standing over the whole thing like maybe he could strategize a way out of this. If he'd thought of anything, though, he didn't get the chance to tell them before the chocochick bolted straight for the caravan.

"Don't let him go underneath!" Gladio shouted.

Noct lunged and missed, sprawling in the dirt while the cute little fucker cocked its head. Hopped, once, and then hopped again, _on top of Noct_ and up the stairs to their caravan.

"Uh," Prompto said, "is it just me or is the door cracked open?"

A moment of silence.

The chocochick looked at them, its head cocked, and then jumped through.

_Fuck._

"At least he's more or less contained," Ignis sighed, pushing his glasses up. "Prompto, if you could kindly close the door?"

Prompto stepped carefully over Noct, shutting the door before the bird could escape. He was pretty sure he caught a glimpse of it inside, running around excitedly in circles. How could something _so cute_ be _so evil?_

That done, he crouched down to snap a shot of Noct's face in utter defeat. "Ah," Prompto sighed, " _memories._ "

"Shut up," Noct muttered.

Prompto grinned at him and finally offered him a hand up. "Outwitted by a chocochick, buddy. That's gotta sting."

"Whatever."

"Careful," Gladio laughed, "or you'll get recruited to catch it."

Noct smirked at him. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Prompto groaned. "Uh, no. Friends are for staying up all night playing video games. It's in the handbook."

Noct arched an eyebrow. "The handbook?"

"Yeah, the Friendship Handbook? You never read it? Well." Prompto huffed in mock irritation, crossing his arms. "That explains a lot."

Noct laughed. "You're such a loser," he said.

"Oh, trust me, it's just an act to make you feel better," Prompto grinned.

Noct went for the noogie lunge, trying to wrap an arm around Prompto's neck. He was settling in for a good wrestling match when Ignis cleared his throat.

"Gentlemen, if I may be so bold as to remind you of the chocobo loose in our quarters?"

Prompto could almost hear Noct roll his eyes. "I don't suppose you want to help," Noct suggested.

Ignis's mouth curved almost imperceptibly. "I leave the chocochick in your care," he said, somehow managing to make that _go fuck yourself_ into a diplomatic treatise.

Gladio nodded firmly behind him, looking more like a super angry bouncer ready to do some violence than the King's Shield, sworn protector of Noct.

"What's the point of even being a prince if you have to catch your own chocochick," Prompto muttered as he followed Noct into the caravan. "Isn't that why you have retainers? To be there for you in your times of need?"

Noct laughed. _At_ him, not with him. "You don't know Ignis and Gladio very well, do you?"

"I'm just sayin'!" Prompto protested. "And anyway, who doesn't want to spend extra quality time with a cute little chocochick?"

Noct gave him a look. "You, by the sound of it."

"Oh, I definitely want to spend time with a cute little chocochick," Prompto said. "Playing with it. Cuddling it. Sticking my face in its soft chocochick feathers. _Not_ chasing it down." He frowned, a terrible thought coming to him. "Didn't Wiz say they can't be toilet trained? You don't think it's—"

Something small and golden _zoomed_ past them. Noct's eyes narrowed, his hand reaching back like he was going to warp.

Prompto grabbed his wrist. "Whoa, whoa, hey dude," he said. "No warping indoors, remember? Ignis would be _pissed_ if you sliced through the wall."

Noct let out an irritated breath, dropping his arm. "Ugh. Fine." And aw yeah, score one for Prompto. 

"We should be winning the chocochick's trust," Prompto told him, "not, like, scaring it more. And trust me, buddy, the warping thing can be kinda terrifying if you're not used to it."

Noct glanced at him and away again, rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Just, you know, it's weird," Prompto told him. "Uh, different? New. Not, like, bad, really, just—"

"Please stop trying," Noct groaned.

"But it's cool, too, you know?" Prompto continued. "And anyway, that's what I'm about. That's what I do. Weirdness. I like it."

Noct snorted, cheeks looking a little pink. "You're definitely a weirdo, that's for sure."

"Weirdos of a feather gotta flock together, right?"

"Uh, not sure I know what that means, but sure. I guess." Noct rubbed at his neck again. "But we still gotta catch this chocobo."

"It's just a chocochick," Prompto said. "How hard can it be?"

He knew as soon as he said that he'd made a terrible mistake. "I take it back, universe! I take it back!"

Noct gave him a _look_ , half curious, half skeptical.

"Never say 'how hard can it be'," Prompto ifnformed him. "That's the number one rule of, like, _anything!_ And I broke it!"

"Can't be that bad," Noct said casually.

"Dude! You just _broke the second rule!_ " 

Noct's mouth twitched a little.

Prompto gasped, loud and theatrical. "On _purpose?_ " He clutched his chest, falling to the floor in dramatic, agonizing death throes. "I've been betrayed! By my own best friend." He let his head thump loudly against the floor.

Noct ignored him, but a second later, the chocochick wandered over in a lazy circle. It kind of, like, pecked at his hair a little bit before zooming off again.

"I think it likes you," Noct grinned, crouching down next to him.

"Yeah, likes to eat my hair," Prrompto muttered.

"It was preening you," Noct said confidently.

"Huh?"

"You know, grooming you. I've seen Ignis's chocobo do it to him before."

" _No way._ "

Noct nodded solemnly.

"And Ignis _let it?_ "

Noct's mouth quirked up, eyes crinkling. "He also sneaks it apples when he thinks no one's looking."

That had to be the cutest thing Prompto had ever heard. He made a promise, then and there, to someday snap a photo of it. 

"C'mon," Noct said, patting at his shoulder. "Up and at 'em. That chocochick isn't going to catch itself."

"Do you ever wonder why we call them chocochicks?" Prompto asked, rolling to his feet. "Like, sure, it's cute, but have you considered," he paused for dramatic effect, " _chickobos?_ "

Noct laughed, even though Prompto hadn't really been joking. 

Fine. Whatever. "I'm calling them that," Prompto informed him. "From now on, they will forever be known as chickobos."

"Sure thing, buddy," Noct said, humoring him.

"You're not going to call them chickobos are you?"

"Uh, probably not?" He shrugged. "Just used to calling them chocochicks."

"Don't they sound like chicks made out of chocolate, though?"

"No?"

"Ugh, whatever," Prompto muttered. He wasn't really angry, just, you know. Playing it up for Noct's benefit. "Use your loser term, then. But _I_ am going to be catching a _chickobo_."

Noct gave him a friendly shove. "You wish. Bet I can catch it first."

"You're on!"

This? This was one battle Prompto could win. Noct maybe had the Power of Kings on his side, but he couldn't warp indoors. And Prompto had lighting fast reflexes, after all, honed from snapping all those photos. And jogging. And, uh, shooting his gun. He kept forgetting about that, but he must've honed _something_ after all that target practice with Cor. 

But first Prompto had to find the chickobo. Hadn't he just been zooming around? 

At least Noct didn't seem to be having a whole lot of luck finding it, either. He was just kind of standing around, aimlessly bending over and peering under things. 

Prompto'd show him how it was really done. He was totally gonna win this race. He opened a few doors, checked under the table, even opened the oven and poked his head inside when he heard this weird noise. The crinkling of plastic and what he'd always imagined _om nom nom_ would sound like in real life. 

And oh shit. Oh _shit_. Their _food._

One of the bags of groceries had fallen on its side in the commotion and there was definitely some rustling going on inside. Ignis was going to lose it. Prompto closed his eyes. Was it worth winning the race just to win Ignis's ire? 

Part of him said _hell yes_ and the other part was too busy fleeing the scene of the crime to contribute anything useful to the discussion. Hell yes it was, then. Prompto took a breath, collected himself, and darted in, righting the bag before the chickobo could escape. Shoved his hands in and emerged triumphant, holding a tiny, wiggly fluff made of golden light and warmth in his two hands. "Got you!"

"Nice work, Prompto!" Noct said from the other room, which meant he hadn't actually been competing at all. Prompto would've felt robbed, only he was still holding the chickobo. It was just _so cute_. 

"Uh, kind of," Prompto said, resisting the urge to hug it. "I mean, but also we didn't catch it soon enough to stop it from eating all of our food."

"What?" Noct asked, coming into the kitchen.

Prompto pointed at the grocery bag with his foot. "Check it out. Think Ignis will go easier on us if we make him hold the chickobo?"

Noct peered into the bag. "It's not too bad," he said doubtfully. "He mostly just ate the veggies."

Prompto groaned. "Those are the only things Ignis cares about, dude."

"Only so he can make me eat them."

"Exactly!"

"It's a good thing," Noct insisted. "And anyway, it's not like we're camping. We can just go eat at the cafe here."

That was... mostly true. "Okay, but you're the one who's going to tell him, right?"

Noct shrugged. "If you want. I don't see what the big deal is. It's just Ignis."

Noct always said stuff like that. _It's just Ignis_ and _he's not scary_ and _he won't kill you at all not even a little bit with his laser eyes of disapproval_. "I do want. I want to stay on his good side, Noct."

Noct rolled his eyes.

"And you're _always_ on his good side."

Noct put a hand on his hip. "What? I am not! Did you miss all those lectures he gave me?"

"That's, like, mild irritation at best," Prompto told him. "Some light disappointment. For, like, a day _max_. But you have _never_ been on his bad side." Prompto knew this as a fact with every fiber of his being.

"Have you?" Noct demanded.

"No, and I'd like to keep it that way." Prompto shuddered. He was pretty sure Ignis had been willing and ready to throw him in the reservoir the first time they'd met. He'd had this cold stare, like, _if the Prince so much as frowns in your presence, Prompto Argentum, your life is over. Permanently._

He still gave Prompto that look, sometimes. 

Prompto brought the chickobo close. "Okay, buddy," he whispered. "It's up to you, now. Make me look good."

The chickobo cocked its head, like it understood. They were going to be best buddies, Prompto could tell.

And then it wiggled out of his hands and onto the floor. For one beautiful second it just stood there, looking around, and then it took off again, tearing down the hall and into the bedroom.

_Dammit._

They both raced after it and almost got stuck in the doorway trying to fit through at the same time. It took a little bit of wiggling, but Prompto finally managed to squirm his way through. "Close the door!" he whispered loudly and kind of frantically. 

"Why are you whispering?" Noct asked, shutting the door.

"So it doesn't freak out!" Prompto whispered.

"Dude, it's as freaked out as it's gonna get. Just—calm down and help me look."

He was starting to sound a little cranky, like it was dinner time and he couldn't make a decision about what to eat so instead of eating anything, they just sat around and talked about it for an hour. Or like he just wanted to sleep and there was still a chickobo on the loose because Prompto had let it escape.

Right. Okay. Focus, Prompto. He had this, he totally had this. "Do you see it?" he asked. 

"No," Noct said. He was definitely irritated. "Or I would be trying to catch it."

Oookay. It was time for Prompto to take matters into his own hands. He bent over, peering under everything. The chickobo couldn't hop _that_ high, right? 

There was a rustling noise coming from somewhere to his right. He stopped, listening really hard, looking for any sign of movement. And— _there_ , with their bags of clothes. Ignis's bag of clothes, to be precise.

Shit.

Maybe if Prompto just, like, lifted the whole thing up? Closed the top? There was the very real chance it would make a horrible mess of Ignis's clothes, but at least it couldn't escape. But _was it worth it?_

He didn't have a chance to find out. Noct lunged for the bag before Prompto could make up his mind, pulling it closed and holding it up in one smooth motion.

"You got it?" 

"Yeah," Noct said grimly. "Let's take it—" and tripped, the bag spilling onto the bed with a burst of clothes and feathers.

" _Nooooo_ ," Prompto wailed.

Noct threw himself onto the bed after it, wrestling with Ignis's clothes. Prompto tried really hard to not laugh, but one kind of bubbled out anyway before he could stuff it down. "It's not funny!" Noct protested, his hands tangled in Ignis's crazy formal sleeping suit.

Ignis was going to murder them _and_ the chickobo and then cook it and eat it over their graves. 

"A little help would be nice," Noct added, his voice strained. 

"Right," Prompto said. "I'll, uh, just—" climb onto the bed? Help Noct strangle Ignis's weird jammies? Roll around on the bed with Noct? No, definitely not that last one. 

The chickobo emerged from the clothes, its eyes wild. It looked Prompto dead in the eye and then started jumping on top of Noct, hopping on his back like some kind of demented fiend.

"Hold still!" Prompto shouted, "Don't panic!" He grabbed a blanket off the closest bed and threw it over Noct and the bird both. "Just—hold on," he told them and climbed onto the bed to try and scoop the thing up. 

"Ow!" Noct said, voice muffled. "Prompto—"

"Almost—" _there_ "—got it!!" Prompto flopped over onto the bed, exhausted, the chickobo safely contained, for real this time. 

It was weirdly still, stuck in the sheets. Prompto poked at it, just to make sure it was still alive, and got pecked for his trouble. It—it kind of really hurt, actually. No wonder all the fiends had left it alone. _They'd_ been the stupid ones, going out of their way to try and rescue it.

After a few seconds, Noct rolled over onto his back, right next to Prompto. It was almost like old times, back in Insomnia, the two of them exhausted after a good wrestling match. Which. Was usually just a pillow fight while Prompto tried to find Noct's ticklish spots without showing any of his own. Wrestling match sounded cooler, though.

"You're not falling asleep are you?" Prompto asked.

"Me? Nah," Noct said, voice lazy and drifting. "Just resting my eyes."

Prompto rolled over on his side to look at him, carefully holding the sheet together. Noct's eyes weren't closed at all. He was looking right at Prompto and grinning, lazy and pleased. Prompto's stomach did a somersault.

"Uh," Prompto said, desperately trying to come up with something that didn't involve Noct's mouth. "Guess we should? Return the chocochick?"

Noct's mouth pulled up in a smirk. Prompto couldn't stop looking at it. "Thought you were calling it a chickobo."

"Uh, I am," Prompto told him. "Just had to make sure _you_ could understand."

Noct laughed, throwing a pillow at him. Prompto caught it with his face. He couldn't let go of the sheet and risk the chickobo escaping again, and anyway, maybe it would give him time to recover from—that. "Alright," Noct groaned, sitting upright, "let's take her to Wiz."

Prompto had never felt so relieved in his entire life. A little disappointed, too, though, because that meant they had to go face the Wrath of Ignis. 

He followed Noct back outside, trailing behind him. Definitely not _hiding_ behind him, though. It was an important distinction.

"We got him," Noct said, grimly triumphant.

"Excellent work," Ignis said approvingly.

"Uhhhhh," Prompto said before he could stop himself, "yeah, you might not want to say that _just_ yet. Not until you see the bedroom anyway. And our food supplies. And our luggage." He closed his mouth. "Yours in particular." Dammit, he'd closed his mouth! Why had he said that last bit?!

Ignis looked at him for a long, long minute and sighed.

"I say we take this, this _hooligan_ straight to Wiz and never look back," Prompto added, trying to salvage any points he still had left with Ignis.

"Yeah," Noct with an enthusiasm that suggested they drag the chickobo through the dust and then beat it up for a bit. Gently, though, because it was still cute.

"Weren't you the one who wanted to keep it as a pet?" Gladio asked.

"Not anymore, I don't."

"Yeah, I'll stick with the well-trained _adult_ chocobos from now on, thanks," Prompto nodded. The chickobo cheeped from inside its prison sheet. "Even if it is just _so cute_ though."

Ignis smiled faintly. "We'll just have to come back and visit."

"Yeah!" Prompto grinned at the same time Noct said, "Now you're talking."

"You've got the bird?" Noct asked, looking at him.

"You know it," Prompto said.

Noct nodded. "Let's go." Gladio and Ignis even got up to follow them over to Wiz. Prompto didn't really think they needed to be there, but it was kind of reassuring at the same time.

"We got him for you," Noct said and gestured at Prompto. Prompto handed it over, complete with sheet.

Wiz blinked at it. "What's this?" He opened it up, the chickobo staying serenely still. Oh, sure, _now_ it was going to behave. How did Wiz do it? "That was sure fast. Thanks for bringing her back in one piece. Hope she didn't cause you too much trouble."

 _She._ So she _had_ been a girl after all! If anyone would know, it was Wiz. Prompto smirked at Noct's back. 

Noct, of course, didn't even notice. "Yeah, she," he ran a hand through his hair, "put up quite the chase."

Prompto didn't know how he said it with a straight face, but that was the thing. Noct was the prince, he had to do this stuff all the time. And he was good at it, too.

"So you'll take her?" Gladio asked.

"Of course! She'll be in good care with me. Thank you kindly, boys."

" _We_ should be thanking _you_ ," Prompto told him gratefully.

Wiz frowned at him. 

"For doing your part in saving the chocochick," Ignis interjected smoothly. "Your rehabilitation efforts are known throughout Eos."

Wiz stroked his beard, nodding. "It's the least I can do for these fine creatures. You find any more abandoned chocochicks in the wild, just bring 'em to me."

"Totally," Noct said.

"Yeah, we've learned our lesson," Prompto's mouth said without any input from his brain.

Wiz frowned at him. "Well, glad to hear it," he said doubtfully.

They took their leave, following Noct back to the caravan.

"All's well that ends well," Ignis said, sounding extremely satisfied and maybe a little done with the whole thing.

Prompto winced. "Y-yeah. Just remember that when you go into the caravan, okay?"

"Oh dear," Ignis said mildly. "Is it that bad?"

"N-no?" Prompto tried. 

"The vegetables are probably ruined," Noct added helpfully.

Ignis arched an eyebrow. "And you had nothing to do with this?"

"What? No!"

"You do hate vegetables," Prompto felt compelled to add.

Noct shrugged. "It's not a big deal. I just give them to Ignis."

Ignis let out a long-suffering sigh, falling to a halt outside the caravan. "So long as they don't end up in the armiger."

"Yeah," Prompto said, "I don't want to go reach for my gun and pull out a carrot instead, dude. Super uncool."

Gladio snorted and Prompto ignored him.

"You won't," Noct said carelessly.

"Because His Highness will stop storing vegetables in the armiger," Ignis cut in pointedly, chin lifted so he could properly talk down his nose at them.

"You have to admit, it did come in pretty handy, though," Prompto said.

Ignis gave him a look, that one that meant he was getting ready to start planning Prompto's murder again. 

"I mean! No! It didn't! It was indirectly responsibly for ruining our produce! And Ignis's sleeping suit! And som—"

"I beg your pardon," Ignis cut in, mercifully ending Prompto's sentence before Prompto could.

"It was getting all familiar with your clothes," Prompto said, laughing nervously. "Guess it liked how you smelled. You getting cozy with the chocobos, Ignis?"

Ignis opened his mouth, closed it again. "I— er—" and stopped to take his glasses off and start cleaning them.

Noct blinked. Frowned. "Specs," he said slowly.

Ignis blinked at him, eyes wide, glasses still in hand. "Yes?"

"You don't have any food in there, do you?"

"Food?" Prompto laughed. "In Ignis's suitcase? No way. He'd get crumbs everywhere."

"Not, er, food _per se_ ," Ignis said. 

Noct put a hand on his hip, a challenging look on his face.

Ignis cleared his throat. "Simply some spare feed for my chocobo in case our supply runs thin." And maybe it was just Prompto's angle, but it looked like he was looking past Noct's shoulder instead of right at him.

Gladio started laughing. "You didn't."

"Didn't? Didn't what?" Prompto asked. He was missing out on something, again.

"It ain't regular feed, is it," Gladio asked, arms crossed.

"It's perfectly palatable—"

"You bought the premium chocobo feed," Noct said accusingly, crossing his arms, too.

Ignis cleared his throat. "It—was on sale—"

"You didn't," Prompto gasped. "No _wonder_ you always win when we race back to the car!"

"And how you always manage to catch up to Noct so quick," Gladio grunted.

"Oh. Em. Gee," Prompto gasped. " _Ignis._ You've been holding out on us!"

Ignis was actually flushing a little. "I simply wanted to ensure I could keep up with the Prince in case of an emergency," he said defensively. 

Noct let out a breath. "Seriously?"

Ignis still wouldn't look at him. "Apologies," he said softly, like it was for Noct's ears alone.

Noct rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Just—quit hiding it."

Ignis opened his mouth.

"And don't use it the night before a race at the racetrack!" he added. 

"Certainly not," Ignis said, all stiff and offended.

"We gonna play King's Knight or not?" Gladio grunted, pulling a chair out and settling in.

"I am _ready_ ," Prompto grinned, grabbing his own chair.

"Ignis?" Noct asked, phone already in hand.

"In a minute," he said, taking a step up towards the caravan. "I'll just start a pot of coffee—" and opened the door. 

Prompto held his breath.

"Ah," Ignis said, frozen at the top of the step. "Yes. I see," and closed the door again. "Perhaps I'll just join you," and came back down, pulling his phone out, face pale. 

"Loser has to clean up," Prompto grinned.

"Winner doesn't have to help," Noct argued.

"You're on," Prompto said. He was totally gonna rock this.

Ignis, of course, won.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for a friend's birthday. She suggested the prompt _Are those greens in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?_ and the idea might've gotten away from me juuust a little bit. This also started as an attempt to write Promptis, but all I could get out of them was the occasional light undertone.
> 
> Please feel free to leave me a comment and let me know what you thought! I will love you forever. And thank you for reading!!


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